(The fourth Test between India and England was evenly poised after rain spoiled the proceedings on Day Three. England were leading by 85 runs in their first innings and India had to take four wickets to bowl them out at the start of Day Four.)

So India put in another abject performance, and England continue to absolutely dominate the series. This after being bounced out at Lord’s. Stuart Broad was named the man of the match after his tremendous burst of six for 25 on Day One. Hopefully, the blow he took to the face today will not be anything too serious, and we will see him back on the field swiftly. Read more about the match in Abhijit Banare’s match report here.

Jordan being persisted with. Oh short ball to Ashwin, he goes for the pull and this is in the air. Lands beyond Robson, so Ashwin survives. Oh that is a beauty! A cover drive from Ashwin that would have made Dravid proud. Short ball, pulled again, brilliantly fielded in the deep. Saved a certain boundary. Just one. Aaron on strike again. AND JORDAN STRIKES! Aaron was looking good, but this was just too good for him, short and into the ribs, Aaron edges this to Buttler. OH PANKAJ BOWLED FIRST BALL! ENGLAND WIN!

OUT! V Aaron 9(13) c Buttler b Jordan, P Singh 0(1) b Jordan

India 153/8 | Overs 42R Ashwin 39(53), V Aaron 8(11)

Moeen continues. And Aaron must have impressed Ashwin quite a bit, because Ashwin has taken a single first ball to let Aaron face. Oh that’s missed everything. It’s a bye, as Buttler’s wicketkeeping hasn’t quite looked very secure. And Ashwin gets four more. He has looked really, really good. Last ball coming up now. And Ashwin takes on Moeen, hoicks him away for six over long on.

India 141/8 | Overs 41R Ashwin 28(48), V Aaron 8(10)

Chris Jordan continues. Oh short and wide, Aaron cuts that for four. Oh outside edge this time, doesn’t carry to the slips. Another attractive shot, four more! This was actually a very nice shot. Aaron certainly not looking anything like Pankaj with the bat. Another 20 overs remaining in the day after this one. Short ball, Aaron ducks. Eight off that over.

India 133/8 | Overs 40R Ashwin 28(48), V Aaron 0(4)

Moeen continues. Can he take another fifer? Oh he beats Ashwin there. Nicely driven by Ashwin but turns down the single. Ashwin has looked India’s most secure batsman this innings. Plays out a maiden.

India 133/8 | Overs 39R Ashwin 28(42), V Aaron 0(4)

Jordan continues. Aaron comes in at No 10. He has a highest score of over 70 in First Class cricket. He will do well to get a quarter of that today. Pankaj Singh is padded up in the hut. He will probably be needed before long. Last ball from Jordan now. And Aaron keeps it out.

Here comes Chris Jordan. Dot ball to begin with. OH THIS IS A RUN OUT! What has Bhuvneshwar done here? He drove to point, took an easy single and then called Ashwin for a second that was never on. Suicidal!

OUT! B Kumar 10(15) run out Moeen

India 132/7 | Overs 38R Ashwin 28(42), B Kumar 9(12)

Moeen bowls a maiden to Ashwin. Still 23 overs left in the day. No good news for Indian fans.

India 132/7 | Overs 37R Ashwin 28(36), B Kumar 9(12)

Jordan again. Oh there’s an appeal for a catch at slip here. Bhuvneshwar plays this into the ground and the catch was claimed at slip. What were they appealing for? This was nothing. Bhuvneshwar a bit tentative here. Wanted to go for what would have been a nothing run. Well bowled again. Oh short and wide, Bhuvi slaps this for four more. Good shot. Last ball now. AND HE’S GONE! Off the final ball, Bhuvneshwar edges to Bell at slip! Wait, that’s a NO BALL!

India 126/7 | Overs 36R Ashwin 27(35), B Kumar 5(7)

Moeen will continue. Ashwin defends for a couple of balls and then takes a single. Oh beautiful cover drive from Bhuvneshwar! The match isn’t over as long as this pair is in the middle. Both men have shown they can bat. India trail by 89 right now.

India 121/7 | Overs 35R Ashwin 26(32), B Kumar 1(4)

Jordan to continue. Starts off with a short ball, and Ashwin pulls this for four more. Another short ball, this time he doesn’t go for it. Oh lovely shot, just opens the face of the bat and gets four more. And another nice little push there. Two more. Oh good short ball, Ashwin pulls out of the shot. Last ball now. And another lovely little nudge for three. Great shot.

India 107/7 | Overs 34R Ashwin 13(26), B Kumar 1(4)

Moeen continues. He now has 19 wickets. Four more wickets so far in this innings. India’s performance has been laughable at best. Still trailing by 110 runs too. It was a good, positive innings from Dhoni though. Can’t fault him for batting like that. Bhuvneshwar gets off the mark. Single to Ashwin now. Another couple of dot balls to end the over.

India 105/7 | Overs 33.1R Ashwin 12(25)

Moeen again. He has been India’s bane in a way very few people would have thought. OH HE’S GONE!Dhoni goes for the big hit, doesn’t get the elevation and Gary Ballance takes a great catch at midwicket!

OUT! MS Dhoni 27(22) c Ballance b Moeen

India 105/6 | Overs 33MS Dhoni 27(21), R Ashwin 12(25)

Chris Jordan now into the attack. Dhoni defends to begin with. Pitched up, and Dhoni plays his usual drive. Couple more runs there. Full and wide again, three more for Dhoni. Ashwin defends off the last ball.

India 100/6 | Overs 32MS Dhoni 22(17), R Ashwin 12(23)

Moeen again. Ashwin takes him on confidently again. Couple more runs through midwicket. And now forward defense. Last ball of the over coming up now. And a defense off the back foot now.

India 98/6 | Overs 31MS Dhoni 22(17), R Ashwin 10(17)

Woakes again. Dhoni drives this one down the ground for four. Lovely shot. Oh short ball, four more off the last ball. Dhoni taking it to the opposition.

India 88/6 | Overs 30MS Dhoni 13(13), R Ashwin 9(15)

Moeen again. And Ashwin gets a couple of runs off the first ball. Oh lovely shot! Four more through covers! A case could be made for Ashwin to bat higher up the order. Most certainly higher than Jadeja!

India 82/6 | Overs 29MS Dhoni 13(13), R Ashwin 3(9)

Woakes again. Short ball, and Dhoni cuts it away for a couple. Oh Dhoni is on the attack here! Four more. And another short, wide ball for four. Great counter-attacking batting here from the Indian skipper. And now a single to the leg side. Short ball to Ashwin, he pulls it down to fine leg for a single.

India 70/6 | Overs 28MS Dhoni 2(8), R Ashwin 2(8)

Woakes comes on now. Over 30 overs left today, but at this rate. Just a couple of runs to Dhoni off that over. Moeen now to Ashwin. And it’s another maiden over.

India 68/6 | Overs 26MS Dhoni 0(2), R Ashwin 2(2)

Moeen continues. AND ANOTHER WICKET DOWN! Jadeja this time. Caught by Jordan off Moeen,and India in trouble of folding over for another innings defeat. This is all going south for India very quickly. Moeen the part-timer? Says who! Ravichandran Ashwin comes in now.

OUT! R Jadeja 4(5)

India 65/5 | Overs 25MS Dhoni 0(1), R Jadeja 4(2)

Anderson again. OH AND HE’S GOT KOHLI! This is absolute disaster for India. Another one bites the dust, this one was full, Kohli drives, and Bell in the slips gobbles it up. Another huge wicket! Jadeja comes in now. Oh he takes on Jimmy! Swipes that one for four through midwicket to get off the mark!

OUT! V Kohli 7(11) c Bell b Anderson

The only way to play Ali…..go back to the interpretation of the LBW law in the 60s 70s and 80s,

India in the depths of despair, as has been the case for quite some time now. Moeen nearly gets Kohli in his first over itself. Inside edge on to the pad, but no fielder. Anderson again. Short ball to Kohli, he has pulled this for four. Moeen again. Kohli goes for his shot, that’s a single to the deep. Rahane now. OH HE’S OUT! Rahane, what have you done? Terrible shot, hits this straight back to Moeen, out caught and bowled.

Jordan again. Oh that’s a full toss, four more to Pujara. Anderson to bowl. And it’s a good, probing maiden over. Moeen comes on to bowl now. Will he spin a web again? Five dot balls to begin with, but Gambhir sweeps firmly off the last ball. That’s four to end the over! Anderson again. AND HE HAS HIS MAN!Gautam Gambhir fends off a short one, it finds the glove and carries through to Buttler.This might just be the final time we see Gambhir batting for India in a Test. Moeen Ali now. OH ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST! Pujara out LBW to Moeen. This is disaster for India!

And we’re back. Jordan to Pujara after Tea. Single to Pujara. Single to Gambhir. And a couple to Pujara now clipped to midwicket. Bit of an appeal against Gambhir, but that was going down leg. James Anderson continues now. Good over, it’s a maiden. Nice full defense from Pujara on that occasion.

So India continue to trail behind England, as has been the case since Lord’s. Murali Vijay was dismissed early, and neither Cheteshwar Pujara nor Gautam Gambhir look particularly secure in the middle. The final session promises to be an interesting one. Catch Abhijit Banare’s session report here.

India 38/1 | Overs 17G Gambhir 13(44), C Pujara 7(22)

Jordan again. Gambhir not looking quite as comfortable as an Indian supporter would like. But at least he’s hanging in there. Woakes to Pujara now. After five dot balls, Pujara finally gets off the mark off the last delivery. Jordan again. Pujara knocks it away for a couple. Moeen Ali to bowl the final over before Tea now. Oh good shot by Gambhir. Short and he cuts it away for four. Oh huge appeal off the last ball, but Gambhir survives. That might have been drifting down leg. So India head to tea at 33/1.

India 26/1 | Overs 15G Gambhir 8(29), C Pujara 0(1)

Jordan continues. Oh that’s four through the slip cordon. Not a great short from Vijay. Oh another boundary. Much better from Vijay, still driving a bit far from the body, but right off the middle. Oh great ball, ripped past the bat. Woakes continues. Gambhir takes the single. OH HE’S GONE! Vijay dismissed LBW to Woakes, poor shot, didn’t get forward and play all over a straightforward delivery. Pujara is the new man in.

OUT! M Vijay 18(36) LBW b Woakes

India 17/0 | Overs 9M Vijay 10(26), G Gambhir 7(28)

Anderson again. He has now conceded 100 percent of the runs scored by India. Woakes has yet to concede a run. This one is a maiden over for Anderson. Woakes again. And he concedes his first runs. Four to third man, India now 8/0. They will be itching to score a run now, they will hate to lose a wicket. Oh tight leave off that one. Anderson into his fourth over. And another maiden. On comes Chris Jordan. India have crawled but have not lost a wicket yet. Gambhir takes a couple. Woakes now. Oh lovely shot from Vijay, that’s four through point. Not too far away from the fielder though. Good ball again. Oh well bowled, that was short and went past Vijay quite quickly. And another good shot to end the over, that’s three more to Vijay.

India 4/0 | Overs 4M Vijay 3(8), G Gambhir 1(16)

James Anderson opens the attack. Murali Vijay to face. Single off the first ball. Oooh good leave in the end. And now he’s off mark. Two for no loss off the first over. Chris Woakes opens the bowling in Broad’s absence. It’s a maiden to Gambhir. Anderson again. Vijay plays out five dot balls and takes a couple off the final ball. Woakes again. And another maiden. Very watchful start by India.

England 367 | Overs 105.3C Woakes 26(39)

Pankaj to Anderson. Single off the first ball, and the lead is now worth 200. Short ball again, and Anderson has a nice old-fashioned slog at it and pulls for four. And now Pankaj pitches one up, Anderson drives. And now it’s Jadeja. Well well well. He’s bowling to Woakes though. And lots of boos from the spectators. That’s a single to Woakes. Anderson on strike. And he plays a reverse sweep for two. On comes Ashwin now. Single to Woakes. Anderson survives the rest. Jadeja again. Woakes gets another single. Anderson on strike. AND HE STRIKES! Jadeja gets Anderson out LBW. Fitting end to the innings.

OUT! J Anderson 9(19) LBW b Jadeja

England 351/8 | Overs 102C Woakes 20(31), J Anderson 0(5)

So James Anderson comes in now. Pankaj Singh to continue after lunch. Oh excellent bouncer, that one really followed Woakes. Swing and a miss from Anderson after the last ball though. Aaron again. Continues to bowl short. Woakes plays a nice little drive there, gets a couple. Single off the last ball. Woakes will keep strike. Pankaj again. Drifts on to the pads, four more. Pankaj again digs it in short. Anderson on strike now, another short ball. Oh he has a dab at that last one, misses. Aaron again. Woakes faces five dot balls. And gets four off the last ball to third man. The lead is now worth 199.

RETIRED HURT! S Broad 12(6)

It helps to have a captain who is not wary of pace & bounce himself. He then is not afraid to dish it out to opposition.

Second session of the match now. Varun Aaron comes on to bowl after Lunch. Woakes to take strike. Just a single to begin with. Short ball to Broad, and he pulls it away for six. Short ball, pull shot, another six. Short ball and oh dear, this one has lodged itself in his helmet. Oh this could be ugly. There is a lot of blood here. This is not at all good. He’s going off the field now.

So the story of the session is that England are now 173 runs ahead, but more importantly Pankaj Singh has a couple of wickets to his name. Catch Abhijit Banare’s lunch report here.

England 325/8 | Overs 97C Woakes 6(10), S Broad 0(2)

Aaron again. Quick but wide, and Buttler gets four through covers. Oh nice short ball there, very quick. Oh Buttler smashes this in the air through covers, but there are no fielders in the area. Four more. Pankaj again. He currently averages 275. Short ball, but Buttler manages to get a single. Four runs off the over. Aaron again. And Buttler now getting into ODI mode. Short again from Aaron, and slashed away for four. Short again. Left. Aaron continues to bowl short and quick, Dhoni continues taking them near his face. And four to third man to end the over. Pankaj again. That one went below the bat. AND ANOTHER ONE! Pankaj now has two! Slower one from Pankaj, and Buttler’s uppish drive finds Pujara at mid-off. And this is the final over before lunch as well. Oh good ball to Broad, first up. Short and outside off, Broad beaten. And another short one to end with, and this will be Lunch on Day Three.

OUT! J Buttler 70(130) c Pujara b Pankaj

England 304/7 | Overs 93J Buttler 55(114), C Woakes 0(4)

Aaron again. Root clips the first ball of the over for four. Oh fine shot, another boundary off the last ball through covers. Pankaj Singh into the attack now. AND HE HAS HIS MAN! FINALLY, FINALLY a Test wicket for Pankaj. He is over the moon, and an entire nation cheers with him. Short ball to Root, and he gloves this one down the leg side to MS Dhoni. Oooh this one nearly took Dhoni’s head off! Pankaj really putting his heart into it now. Oh Woakes plays this one really awkwardly. India suddenly rejuvenated.

Varun Aaron back on now. Four dot balls to begin with. Decent, quick over so far from Aaron. Just a couple off the fifth ball. And again on the pads, just a single though. Bhuvi again. Short and pulled, the batsmen had to really dive. Ohh Dhoni has fluffed a run-out chance! How can you win if you keep fluffing chances? Buttler saved AGAIN. Aaron comes on again. Oh short and quick again, Buttler beaten. Good over there, just a single off it. Bhuvi continues. And this will be Buttler’s 50! Slightly short, beautifully driven off the back foot. Wonderful debut series for him. Oh huge appeal for LBW! Buttler survives it though. And a boundary off the last ball.

England 279/6 | Overs 87J Root 65(143), J Buttler 43(100)

Bhuvneshwar continues. Much better line from Bhuvi this over. AND DROPPED! Again, the Indian slip cordon spills one. Virat Kohli it is, his nightmare continues. Buttler dropped by Kohli off Bhuvi. Pankaj comes on again. He bowls one short, Buttler pulls and gets four more. Pankaj’s shoulders beginning to droop now. Bhuvi again. This partnership now worth 97. And now the partnership is worth 101. Full ball from Bhuvi, it’s been driven down the ground, the batsmen run four. Another good over for England. Pankaj continues. Buttler drives this down the ground, three more. Another good over for England. Bhuvi again. Oh how did that miss the stumps? That went right though Root. Good shot, but hit right back to the bowler that time. Drinks on the field now.

England 259/6 | Overs 82J Root 58(127), J Buttler 34(86)

Jadeja continues. And bowls four more dot balls, the pressure continues. And two singles off the last two balls, so the sustained pressure is released a little. The new ball is now due though. It will be interesting to see whether Dhoni takes it. Bhuvneshwar Kumar into the attack now. And the new cherry has been taken! Will Bhuvi get the ball to talk? The lead is worth 96 now. Single off the first ball. And Buttler drives one through the covers for four. Good shot. The lead now worth 101. Oh another boundary. Very good shot again from Buttler. Oh and now he goes past the bat. Not the best start from Bhuvi, but this was his first over. Here comes Pankaj now. Short, wide, and cut away. Just one though. Buttler now on strike. Well bowled, good carry. Oooh big swing there. But nothing to bother Buttler, it’s still a little wide. Again, swing but a bit wide. Nicely bowled, it’s two off the last ball.

England 246/6 | Overs 79J Root 55(124), J Buttler 24(71)

Varun Aaron into the attack now. Just a couple of overs from Pankaj. Decent start to the over. Not quite as quick as he can be. It’s a maiden over. Decent one from Aaron, but Dhoni’s tactics quite puzzling. Why give Pankaj just a couple of overs? Anyway, Jadeja is back. And another maiden now. No runs for a while now, good bit of pressure being sustained. And now Aaron. Oooh good ball there! Short and quick, beat Root comprehensively. And good carry again. Aaron bowling quite nicely. And this is another maiden over here. Buttler might be getting a bit anxious now.

England 246/6 | Overs 76J Root 55(112), J Buttler 24(65)

Ravindra Jadeja continues. He hardly looks threatening right now. Two more off the over. Here’s Pankaj. Oh beats Buttler’s drive. And again. Pankaj needs to sustain this line and length. Oh lovely shot to end the over, but some fine fielding from Pujara saves a certain boundary. Maiden for Pankaj. Jadeja continues. Bit of a misfield from Aaron concedes a single. Three off that over, all ones.

England 241/6 | Overs 73J Root 52(103), J Buttler 22(56)

We are now ready for the first ball of the day. Surprise surprise, no Varun Aaron, no Bhuvneshwar Kumar, it’s Ravindra Jadeja to start proceedings! And just a single off that over. The second new ball is due in just eight overs. And here’s Mr Unlucky, Pankaj Singh. Starts off bowling a good line. Root batting on 49 at the moment. And that’s his fifty. Yet another one for the Yorkshire batsman.

Hello and welcome to CricketCountry’s live blog of Day Three of the fourth Test between India and England at Old Trafford, Manchester. I am Shiamak Unwalla, and I will be bringing the live updates to you. An unbeaten 68-run stand between Joe Root and Jos Buttler took England to 237 for six with a 85-run lead against India but rain halted their progress shortly after lunch on Day Two of the fourth Test at Old Trafford on Friday. Root (48*) and Buttler (22*) had put brakes on India’s fightback on day two and when things were again looking up for the hosts, the rain came pouring down cutting short the second session. Read Day Two’s final report here.

Just nine overs were bowled and 36 runs added in the second session before rain halted England’s progress yesterday.

Pacers Varun Aaron and Bhuvneshwar Kumar led India’s fightback as England were reduced to 201 for six at lunch. England, who had skittled out India for 152 on the first day, lost three of their top order batsmen in the morning session with Bhuvneshwar accounting for two of them. Starting the day at 113 for three, Ian (58) and Chris Jordan (13) set-about consolidating England’s strong position in the match.